Darkling. Part 18

The man's voice penetrated the haze of pain b.u.t.tressing the periphery of my thoughts. Where was I? Was I still in the cavern? And then I remembered-I was safe, in a temple, tied down but under the watchful eyes of someone who was helping me.

I licked my lips, expecting my voice to sound raspy from screaming, but it came out clear and calm. "Yes... yes, I can hear you."

"We witnessed what happened to you. Now that we know, we can work on breaking the cord that binds you to Dredge. Do you understand what I'm saying?"

The words drifted through my thoughts and I flashed back to dancing when Dredge said dance. A puppet A puppet. He'd called me a puppet. "What do I need to do?"

"You must return to that moment and find the thread of energy that connects the two of you. It's not just his blood that makes him your sire."

Go back? Did he say go back back? The last thing I wanted to do was dive back into that mire of pain and anger. But then the thought of being free dangled, the carrot in front of the horse.

"What do I have to do? How do I do this?"

"It's simple. You go back and I'll be here, shoring you up. Focus on finding the cord that binds you to him. We need to know precisely where it connects in your aura so we can pinpoint and sever it. But before we make the break, we need to find out where he is. For that, you'll have to reach out from the present through the binding cord and touch his soul."

Jareth brushed a stray hair out of my forehead and that simple kindness made me sniffle. Reliving the past was exhausting, painful. But if reliving it is this bad, think what it's doing to you every day, every hour, every minute you carry the burden But if reliving it is this bad, think what it's doing to you every day, every hour, every minute you carry the burden. The words echoed in my mind and I blinked behind the blindfold. All of my anger and sorrow couldn't be wiped away as if it had never happened, but perhaps I could lay it down? Quit carrying it and let it go?

"All right," I said. "Let's do it. How can I keep from being sucked under by the memories?"

"I'll be by your side, now that I know what you're facing," he said. "Lean on me. Call on my strength."

As the smell of blood came close once again, I said, "Dredge tried to do this, didn't he? You took him back to his time of turning?"

Jareth let out a long sigh. "I did. I had no idea he'd been a priest of Jakaris in life-the years of perversion that twisted his soul. And so the ritual went terribly wrong. Instead of being willing to let go of the anger, he was looking for a way to absorb his sire's power into himself. And it worked."

I thought about that for a moment. Dredge had sought to embrace the power, and to that end, tricked Jareth. He'd given in to the very soul of evil. I wouldn't follow in the footsteps of my sire, no matter what the cost. "I'm ready."

A pause, and then Jareth began the incantation again, sprinkling three more drops on my forehead.

Surrender your expectations. Surrender your doubts.

Surrender your fears. Surrender your strengths.

Surrender your anger. Surrender your control.

And then three drops on my lips and I reached out and sucked them in as I held on for the ride to come.

Creature of the night, demon of the blood, Turn back the clock, turn back the minutes and hours and years.

Return to the night you were born anew.

Return to the night of your siring.

Once again, I was back in the cavern, back in my now-dead body. But this time, I felt a golden glow cradling my head as I frantically tried to place myself. I was dead-I was dead and Dredge had turned me into a vampire. But wait But wait, this was a dream, a vision I was walking through.

That's right, I thought, breaking through the fear. My name is Menolly and I've been a vampire for twelve Earthside years, and I'm really lying on a platform in the Temple of Reckoning. These are merely shades of the past My name is Menolly and I've been a vampire for twelve Earthside years, and I'm really lying on a platform in the Temple of Reckoning. These are merely shades of the past.

I tried to focus, to find Jareth. Then, I realized he was was the golden glow that was cus.h.i.+oning my head. He was here, watching over me. I instinctively tried to take a deep breath, but my lungs didn't want to work right. the golden glow that was cus.h.i.+oning my head. He was here, watching over me. I instinctively tried to take a deep breath, but my lungs didn't want to work right.

Wait, I'm dead.

My thoughts began to sort themselves out, as memory kicked in. That's right, I thought. It had taken me over a year to learn how to take a breath. Meanwhile, I'd spent far too many days dreaming that I was suffocating.

Jareth's hands ran down my shoulders, reminding me that I wasn't trapped here with Dredge. I wouldn't have to go through the year of madness again, locked like an animal in a silver cage while the OIA tried to retrieve my soul from the shattered state Dredge left it in.

Now... time to find that cord. I forced myself to relax and sought out the tendrils of energy racing through my body. The blood and the rape and torture had created implings-parasitical creatures created from intense emotions. For the first time, I could see that they'd attached themselves to my aura and they were probably still with me after all these years. Shuddering, I tried to push them aside but Jareth patted me on the shoulder and I let it go for now.

I examined my body, searching for the cord that chained me to Dredge, seeking the ties that bind. My body was torn and scarred. When I'd died, the wounds were still fresh. As I woke to my new state, they would be faded, no longer raw, but the scars would be there forever, neck to ankle, branding me as one of his disciples.

Suddenly I stopped. There it was-emerging from the back of my neck. I blinked. Why hadn't I ever seen this before? Probably because I never bothered looking Probably because I never bothered looking. But there it was, connecting me to Dredge, locked into his lowest chakra, the vortex of survival.

Resisting the urge to try something stupid like removing it myself, I did my best to let Jareth know I'd found what we were looking for.

The next moment, I found myself shooting out of the cavern, back into the present, and when I opened my eyes the blindfold was gone and the shackles had been removed from my wrists and ankles. Jareth helped me sit up and gave me a soft smile.

"It's connected from the back of my neck to the lowest chakra on Dredge," I said.

"Menolly!" Camille rushed over to my side, her face so wet it looked raw. Good thing she wore waterproof mascara, I thought. Morio stood back.

I looked at Jareth. "How much do they know?"

Camille spoke. "We saw it all. It was like watching a movie. We heard everything." She sank to her knees, her hands clutching the hem of her skirt as tears trickled down her face. "I didn't know it was that bad. I'm so sorry-I didn't know. I didn't know... forgive me, please..."

Sliding off the dais I discovered that I was a little seasick, but otherwise I felt normal. I knelt by her side and pulled her into my arms. "I didn't want you to know. Delilah, either. I still don't want her to know. She's not strong enough to handle it."

Camille pressed her lips against my face, kissing my cheeks, my eyes, my forehead. "My precious Menolly. Mother tried... she tried to help you."

"I know," I said, staring at the ground. "And I've always blamed her. I thought she wasn't strong enough and I blamed the fact that she was human for that. Now I understand. She wanted to help me but she couldn't fight Dredge's hold."

"You'd been turned into a vampire. Menolly, no mortal spirit can sever that transformation, not in the physical realm, not on the astral. But she tried-she loves you."

I wondered just how much Mother could love what I'd become but pushed the thought out of my head. "The important thing is that we have the location of my bondage to Dredge."

"And I know what you went through," Camille said. "Now... I can understand you a little better."

"That too," I said, softly. Maybe it was better this way. Maybe Camille would be able to help me when the rage and hunger threatened. I looked up at Morio, who was staring at me, a solemn expression on his face.

"Menolly, don't underestimate Delilah," he said. "Someday she may need to know, for her own safety. Don't write her off as a weakling."

I blinked. Trillian had said the same thing. Maybe I should pay attention. "I'll remember that." I allowed Jareth to help me up. "What do we do now? How much time before first light?"

He sucked in a deep breath. "I told you, we're working outside of time this night. You'll be home before sunrise. Follow me." He led us into a room to the left of the chamber we'd been in. There was a pentacle inscribed on the marble floor, carved into a deep trench and inlaid with hemat.i.te. Even I could feel the grounding pull of the polished metal as it settled the magic into the floor.

The rest of the room was empty, except for four podiums, one at each quarter of the circle, where p.r.o.nged stands held gemstones as big as my fist. Camille's eyes went wide as she stared at the jewels. To the north was an emerald. To the east, a diamond. To the south-a ruby. And to the west, a sapphire.

I tapped her on the shoulder. "Your jewelry fetish is showing."

She flashed me a smile. "Amazing, aren't they? I didn't know some of those gem crystals could grow so big."

"They must be worth a fortune." I turned to Jareth. "How do you protect them from being stolen?"

Jareth stared at me, clearly amused. "Do you really think anybody could manage to not only infiltrate the City of Seers, but then get through our temple with all the wards and bindings? For one thing, we're outside of normal time. Within this s.p.a.ce, we've entered a parallel realm and there's only one way in or out. The door through which you entered is only visible when we deem it so."

Morio and Camille wandered around the edges of the pentacle. Morio sniffed. "Magic is thick here."

"Yes, and this is where we will pinpoint Dredge's location, and sever his connection to Menolly." Jareth motioned to Morio. "Take the element of air, if you will." Morio looked surprised but obeyed, and Jareth turned to Camille. "If you will guard the west." She walked over to stand beside the sapphire.

"Where do you want me?" I asked, ready to get the show on the road.

"In the center, but don't move yet." He clapped his hands and the door opened again. Two robed figures glided in. I couldn't even begin to see their faces behind their hoods. One silently stood by the ruby, the other beside the emerald. "Once they activate the stones, you'll walk into the center and I'll follow, then they'll close the circle."

The globes of light dimmed. Jareth motioned to the figure standing by the emerald. "Just follow suit," he told Camille and Morio.

The cloaked woman-in this s.p.a.ce, I could smell her delicate scent-reached up and grasped the emerald tightly in both hands. The stone began to glow, a glimmer in the center at first that radiated out. A beam shot from the crystal to land directly in the center of the diamond.

"By soil and branch, sanctify and protect this s.p.a.ce," the woman's whisper echoed in the chamber.

Morio glanced at Jareth, who gestured the go-ahead. Morio grasped the diamond with both hands and inhaled sharply. Once again, the crystal began to glow with a s.h.i.+mmer so white it almost burnt my eyes. The beam shot out to kiss the ruby.

"By wind and gale, sanctify and protect this s.p.a.ce," Morio said, his voice trembling ever so slightly.

Jareth nodded to the robed man standing near the ruby. There was something familiar about him but I couldn't pinpoint what. He reached up and once again, a light shot forth, this one crimson as blood.

"By flame and sun, sanctify and protect this s.p.a.ce."

"A moment," Jareth said, holding his hand up to stop Camille. "Come, Menolly." He led me through the opening between the west and north gates to the center of the pentagram, then turned back to Camille. "Close the wards," he said.

Camille took hold of the sapphire and the beam shot forth, touching the emerald. "By water and ice, sanctify and protect this s.p.a.ce." As she spoke, a rumbling from the floor sounded, from the very center point of the pentacle, and a platform rose from the tile, upon which sat a huge crystal ball.

"And now," Jareth said, looking at me. "It's time for us to find out where Dredge is. And to sever your ties."

I knelt by the dais and took hold of the crystal ball. This was it. And I sincerely hoped that Dredge wouldn't notice and go on a killing spree before we could make it home.

CHAPTER 15.

The crystal ball began to glow as a ripple tickled my fingers.

"Look into the ball. Think of Dredge, remember that night." Jareth stood behind me, hands on my shoulders, letting me source his energy.

"Dredge, where the f.u.c.k are you?" I whispered. A swirl began to form within the crystal. Jareth steadied me, and I managed to keep my hands on the orb. We were still connected. If Dredge realized I was spying on him, he'd have the advantage. Which meant I had to slide into his mind, then out again before he knew I was there.

The mist in the crystal swirled, a phantasmagoria of red and bronze threads. I found myself sucked deep into the scintillating colors. They dipped and circled like snakes coiled in a mating dance.

The room darkened and I found myself spiraling through the ether, headed toward a brilliant crimson figure up ahead. As I drew near, the presence of my sire loomed large and deadly and then he was there, Dredge, in the center of the brilliant b.l.o.o.d.y light. Seen from this perspective, I understood why he commanded so much authority. Dredge was pure power trapped in an undying body by the greed and l.u.s.t that had grown within him over the years. The chaos around him took aim like a hundred wanton arrows, firing at anyone or anything that drew near.

Nearby a deep laughter startled me and I twisted, trying to see who was there. A giant wolf rose above Dredge's shoulder, but this was no Were, no lycanthrope or native spirit. No, I knew who this was. Loki, lord of tricksters, lord of the giants, lord of mischief. And Loki held Dredge's soul firmly in his palm. So he'd traded a G.o.d of vice for the hand of chaos and madness.

I could see the cord of fire and frost that connected Dredge to the demiG.o.d. No wonder the vampire had grown so powerful over the years. Loki owned his soul, and Dredge was feeding the havoc monger. Which meant... oh great G.o.ds! Loki Loki was Dredge's sire. No wonder Jareth hadn't been able to free Dredge. And Dredge had absorbed some of Loki's power. was Dredge's sire. No wonder Jareth hadn't been able to free Dredge. And Dredge had absorbed some of Loki's power.

Shaking my head, I focused on the task at hand. So far, the demiG.o.d hadn't noticed me and I wanted to keep it that way. I might be able to handle Dredge, but Loki? No mortal challenged the G.o.ds and lived. No vampire either, which was why Dredge was still bound to him.

I slipped around front to stare at him. Dredge didn't even blink. Jareth had promised me that he wouldn't be able to detect me unless he was deliberately focusing on the astral, and it appeared that his attention was wandering elsewhere. Even if I draped my arm around his shoulders, he wouldn't sense me, since he was my sire and we shared blood.

Now comes the hard part...

Jareth's thoughts merged with mine and I realized that he was hanging out in my head. Somehow he'd managed to tap into my mind. Normally that would p.i.s.s the h.e.l.l out of me but right now I was grateful that I wasn't alone.

What next? I focused the question toward Jareth, apparently doing too good of a job because I felt him jump.

Try to turn down the volume, would you?

I blinked. Oops. I'm sorry Oops. I'm sorry, I thought, but he shook it off.

Listen to me carefully. You need to walk into him. Look out from his eyes and see what he's seeing. Try to figure out where he is, from what he's looking at. You don't have much time, though. As soon as you find something to gauge a location, then get out and we'll sever your cord to him. I can see where it is now. Don't play hero-you can't stay inside of him long before he notices you're there. Got it?

Yep. I didn't want it, but I got it.

My stomach knotting, I made my way over to his side. Even here on the astral, I could smell him and that smell took me back. I spiraled back to his touch, to his laughter, to him filling me deep with his s.e.x that froze me to the core of my heart. And then his wrist pressed against my lips, forcing me to drink and I understood what it meant to die alone, in pain, in anger...

Get moving. Don't get bogged down in memories. Jareth's thoughts were urgent. I licked my lips, still tasting Dredge's blood in my mouth.

Sorry. I'm going. I shook my head. The past was the past. It was time to move forward. And moving forward meant killing the motherf.u.c.ker who'd dragged me down into this nightmare.

I jumped. Playing walk-in didn't thrill me, but if I had to infiltrate the devil, then infiltrate I would. As I entered his body, a surge of power ran through me. The thought of killing off his soul and taking over his form raced through my thoughts. Kyoka had done it, and with Dredge, I'd have power beyond my wildest dreams. But then I remembered the cord tying Dredge to Loki and quickly disposed of that idea. Trade a degenerate sire for a master who was ten times worse? No thanks.